He continued down the hallway, keeping up the pace. Then he heard it. A scream, maybe of a toa, echoed down the hallway. He stopped, almost stunned. Then listening, he heard the very quiet steps of a creature. Could it have been the rahkshi? Or was it dead?

He took no chances, and began to prepare his elemental power. The tunnel that he was in would T with the other. A small nook in the side of the wall looked, almost appealing. The toa hid in it, maybe he though, just maybe, he could spring out behind it.

To cling to life here in the deepest depths of dark depravity was not a pleasant experience, but it was one she would endure, if she knew anything about herself.

After the Rahkshi of Silence had blocked her hearing for so long, it had now returned in full force, letting her pick up on every single, solitary little noise at a volume tenfold of what it actually was, the not-so-silent taps of her new staff against the floor, her own loping footsteps and her erratic breath all melding together into an indescribable mess of background noise that skated past her attention like sand on a Kikanalo.

She continued to stagger forward slowly, wasting as little energy as possible.

The steps grew louder. He peaked from his hiding spot, and saw all he needed to see. The tip of a rahkshi's staff peaked out as it moved forward. He activated his elemental power, increasing the gravity in the area, but he soon realized his mistake. It was simply a female toa. The unnamed one ducked behind the rock ledge and stopped using his element, hoping he had not been noticed.

When a sudden weight fell over her, she collapsed completely, dropping to the floor with a dull thud. Her staff cluttered out of her hand and she herself remained still on the floor, breathing, groaning as the pain in her back flared up again, if there was any sound that bore witness of an intruder, she didn't notice it.

She coughed as she got up on her knees, surveying the surroundings... nothing.

She forced herself back on her own two feet, still leaning on the staff, and took a heavy sigh before she continued walking.

He kept silent in his small corner in the wall, only hearing the newcomer outside, and the barley audible sound of his breathing. Questions few into his mind. Why was someone else here? He felt the temptation to confront her, and ask, though he knew better. He would simply follow in the shadows. He hadn't been seen yet, and if he laid low, he might just be able to follow her without detection.

Mangaia was a quiet place, she had learned that much from her brief time down here, and in such a quiet place an insignificant noise suddenly became ten times as loud, which was especially a problem for her because her hearing was already very strong. And now she heard faint footsteps... someone was following her.

Her head snapped around as she moved quickly, the staff falling to the floor as she let go of it to get at her bow and arrows. In seconds she had an arrow ready to fire, her sharp eyes scouting the black depths for any sign of a stalker.

She had heard him, but how? He had only managed to take a step out and she had already drawn and pointed a bow in the general direction of him. For a moment, the black toa looked at the newcomer. Hidden from view, he smiled. His armor provided some camouflage, while darkness did the rest. The toa focused his view directly behind her.

A moment later, a stone from the hallway that he had come from flew across and struck a wall with a considerable snap. Using the new noise to mask his own, he stepped backwards, making himself completely hidden from view.

How had she seen me, wondered the unnamed toa. She had not taken any risks, and had already engaged. The unnamed one was not in the mood to fight, seeing has he had just come from one.

One person might have just dodged the arrow, a different one would have hidden behind a shield. He did something different. The toa soon began to manipulate the gravity in the room, increasing it. The arrow that the de-toa shot met with the ground well before it came close to where he hid.

The arrow thunked into the ground from an unnatural influence. Her sonic reading had given her the general image of a Toa, she guessed his power could be anything from Plantlife or Gravity to Iron or Magnetism, this was not a fight she could win.

So she was delighted to find he did not strike back, he merely evaded, after a moment's consideration she let go of her bow and raised her open palm, signaling nonviolent intent.

The black toa stepped out from his hiding spot. For a moment he judged the shadowy outline of the figure in front of him. He activated his mask. A second later the lightstone that he had used earlier slid out from the bag that he had stashed it in, and illuminated the path before him. He shot her a quizical look for a moment, and then quietly spoke.

She felt an immense sensation of relief upon seeing the other Toa turn away from her. She hadn't been getting a good impression of him.

She looked down to see the Rahkshi's staff, sighing. She knelt down, carefully, to not hurt her back more than necessary, it was a very stiff an awkward affair. She propped herself against the staff and turned.

She turned in the direction she had already been walking, and continued to stagger forwards through the depths of mangaia.

Syvra could not help but hear the struggles going on. Though he ignored them for the most part. However he could hear footsteps coming down this tunnel and that he could not allow. Without hesitation he threw up a wall of plants to block off this tunnel and prevent unexpected visitors until echelon could arrive.

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Finally, my signature has returned to it's natural state of near-nothingness.

She stopped when a wall of plants suddenly came into view before her, blocking her path further. She almost felt defeated there as she contemplated how to claw her way past this next obstacle in her path, she'd rather not risk going back.

She approached the plants carefully, studying them... they were very fresh, almost as if they'd been instantly been grown only seconds earlier.

"I can not allow that. However I can offer you guidance. There is a tunnel not far from the way you arrived. It is semi-hidden and easy to miss. I can have Venixa lead you there. But I can not allow you to come down this way for your own safety."

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Finally, my signature has returned to it's natural state of near-nothingness.

He kept on course, and kept walking. Though the newcomer had been a distraction, the black toa had no interest in what her business being here was. Most people came to see the sights, though not many, for these caves held dangers that even he did not understand fully. He just had to keep moving. There where places to go, and people to see.

"Pride can do that to a person. Personally when Syvra travels through here he always creates these plants that give off a natural light. It does not keep the rahkshi away but he uses me. He will have me scout ahead to see if there are any. However You should have seen this one time.. He took down a Rahkshi using madu cabolo and stealth."

She said with such admiration in her voice. Almost like a schoolgirl crush

"However why were you here in the first place? Trying to pass through to get somewhere else? I mean there are other routes."

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Finally, my signature has returned to it's natural state of near-nothingness.

As he turned the corner, the black toa though he heard something. What was it in the distance, he thought? The unnamed one stopped, listening carefully. For a moment, he thought that it was just he paranoia, but then he heard it. Footsteps, and voices. He kicked a rock swearing. Was someone following him? He could only afford to assume the worst.

Quickly he stashed his lightstone next to the kraata he had collected earlier. He had to think fast. Looking to his sides, he looked for a nook in the wall like he had found earlier, but none where to be found. Then he looked up. A small out crop from where a small tunnel merged with the one he was in now stuck out. It was well placed, but the trick was getting up to it.

Using some aid with his elemental powers of gravity, the black toa quickly found himself looking down upon the tunnel, waiting to see who was behind him.

"That you are wrong. He does care.. If he didn't he would have killed you there. Instead he gave you the chance to return from whence you came.. This tunnel you are in does lead to a main junction where several tunnels connect."

IC: Syvra

Syvra leaned against the tunnel wall as he pondered. He could feel the mental drain from maintaining venixa's form for so long. However this is why he had her choose a smaller form.. less strain allowing for a longer duration.. But he still could not deny the mental drain.

"Oh i hope she loses gray soon.."

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Finally, my signature has returned to it's natural state of near-nothingness.